Saturday, April 30, 2011

Spin Off magazine

Are you a spinner who loves Spin Off magazine? As you know we sell the magazine here. But the good news I have for you is that some lovely person donated a lot of back issues of Spin Off to ETC, We are keeping them here as a reference. You can come in and browse through back issues and get reinspired or read up on some technique you may have forgotten over the years. We will have them back in the reference library for you.

Friday, April 29, 2011

Double the Fun

The big buzz for today is the Royal Wedding. I was not one to get up to watch it at 3am PST but I did catch to news stories this morning. I absolutely loved her dress in its elegant simplicity. I think she has set the trends for fashion in the flower petal bottom skirt.

I have been doing some weaving lately in Doubleweave Pickup. It took me awhile to really get the hang of it. At first I was so frustrated that I thought I would give up weaving all together. But I worked through it and now I am loving Doubleweave Pickup. I don't want to stop weaving because I am enjoying watching the next block pop up. My weaving is only a four shaft pattern. In August Jenninfer Moore is coming to teach Doubleweave Beyond the Basics here at ETC. I can not wait to see what other possibilities are out there for me to discover in Doubleweave.

A new class has just been added to the schedule, Rep Weave to be taught by Suzie Liles starting on May 13th. We have openings for a few more students, so sign up soon.

Saturday, April 23, 2011

Only in L.A..

Where can one find some blue socks made from skimmed, dried and bioengineered milk. Impossible you say. No way! Well let me tell you at the Los Angeles Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising you can find just those socks. They also have a skein of Dungeness Crab fiber (like spider silk) and recycled cassette tapes spun into a mini dress. How cool is that? Unfortunately these items are not for sale, but they are in the library there along with 15,000 other items. Fortunately this is open to the public by appointment. You can even have one of their staffers wrap you in a woven banana leaf.
reference LA Magazine.

Friday, April 22, 2011

Inspirtation from Spring

I have been loving this warm spring weather that has finally arrived here in Eugene. The daffodils are blooming in the front of the shop and our native plants along the side of the building are sprouting beautiful buds. The currant plant has lovely flowers on it too. Inside the shop people are also budding with wonderful ideas. Two blossoming students are doing doubleweave for the first time. They have painted their warps with bright colors and are warped up and ready to start weaving. Other students have been learning layering color in dying and resist dying on fabric. Each persons work is so unique. I marvel at their ideas. I know the sunshine shining in through the windows illuminates all the colorful fibers on the shelves. If you are short of ideas of what to do for your next project, come on in and walk around, and browse through the books. I think you will find you will go away prepared to create.

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

Happy Birthday Boss

It is a wonderful day here at the Textile Center. Today is Suzie's Birthday and hopefully she is having a fun day. Marilyn is here teaching her Layering on Cloth class. The students are so enthusiastic and I am really looking forward to seeing their finished work. Every class is another layer on the fabric and no two are alike. We did a bit of rearranging here at the store. Hopefully this will make it easier for you to find the right size fiber for your project. I love moving things around as it refreshes my mind of yarn that I have not seen for a bit, and gives me new ideas for a project. We received a large shipment of 5/2 mercerized cotton in various colors. I have already picked out two colors for my next doubleweave project.

Wednesday, April 6, 2011

Felting demonstration

I have been so busy around the shop lately putting 5/2 mercerized cotton on the shelves. We got a shipment of so many beautiful colors. Now is the time to find the one you want to weave that perfect project. We also have a lot of 10/2 mercerized and unmercerized cotton in natural colors use. It would be wonderful to dye first in a group of colors and then weave them up. I am excited because I am going to felt some cute little animals, (bunnies, sheep and chicks) for my grandsons. I got the plans from Wool Pets, a wonderful step by step book we have here in the shop. If you are looking to learn a new felting technique come by ETC on Saturday at 1pm and join in on the free demonstration using Art Felt Paper. It is easy and fun, and no physical work involved. Hope to see you here.

Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Blog Reader Rewards

We wanted to have our blog readers to get a reward. If you print this out and bring it in you can get a 10% discount on one item in the store. You can also call in with an order let us know you have read our blog. 541-688-1565. This offer will be good till April 15th
Check out our products on http://www.eugenetextilecenter.com. If you see something on line you like call us and order.
We also have much more in our store.
Thank you for supporting us.
The Eugene Textile Center Crew